Cats back McIntosh

GEELONG has no concerns about the long-term value of recruit Hamish McIntosh, despite the former North Melbourne ruckman suffering another injury setback with his troublesome right knee.

McIntosh has undergone arthroscopic surgery to drain some fluid from the back of the knee that caused him problems in his final years at the Roos, and the 28-year-old is expected to be sidelined for two to three weeks - placing him in doubt for round one.

It's believed the latest complaint is loosely related to the knee injury that prevented McIntosh from playing after round seven last year and is similar to Lance Franklin's injury. But the Cats are confident the issue is ''pretty minor''.

''We've always known from the outset there was a bit of a risk with his knee but we are not that concerned about it,'' Cats football manager Neil Balme said.

''I'm not trying to pour cold water on it, who knows with these things, but it's certainly nothing serious,'' he said.

McIntosh went under the knife late last year to replace his posterior cruciate ligament, and was restricted to just one game in 2011 because of Achilles problems.

Cats coach Chris Scott said it was a problem that surgery could fix quite quickly, even though it would almost certainly rule McIntosh out of the NAB Cup.

''He could have put up with discomfort for a long time or we could nip it in the bud and try to give him some relief short-term,'' he said.

''We're still extremely confident that over the medium-term, a period of years, [McIntosh] is going to be a very valuable acquisition.''

The Cats will be under-manned in the ruck for Saturday's NAB Cup opener against West Coast and Fremantle in Perth, with Nathan Vardy and Dawson Simpson also unavailable.

That leaves Trent West to carry most of the ruck duties against the Eagles and the Dockers.

The lack of fit ruckmen notwithstanding, Scott expects Geelong to take a strong squad on the interstate trip. New recruits Jared Rivers (Melbourne) and Josh Caddy (Gold Coast) will be in the team, as will Travis Varcoe.

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